0. Clean Paint/Mixing Sticks- Dirty sticks can cause contamination of epoxy
0. 5 Quart/Graduated Mixing Buckets- Any Buckets showing measurements will work fine, you will need multiple
0. Mixing Cups- You will need one cup for each accent color in your kit
0. Nylon Brush- To paint base coat onto and vertical edges (use brushes that don’t lose bristles)
0. Epoxy Knife or Plastic Putty Knife- Using a knife is much easier when spreading epoxy onto your surface
0. Propane Torch or Heat Gun-The torch should be used to pop bubbles and marble your accent colors, but the heat gun will only pop bubbles and NOT marble the colors (the heat gun would be used best when you are only having one color for your countertop)
0. Masking Supplies-Drop cloths or plastic sheeting, masking tape, this is to avoid spills and leaking product onto unwanted surfaces.
0. Gloves
0. DAP Spackling- To cover and grout lines or cracks, you may also need sand paper to sand the areas to match the level of the current countertops.

TEMPERATURE RESTRICTIONS:

First and Foremost make sure the area in which you will be working at, the temperature is between 60-65◦ and your product itself is between 65-70◦. This is really important, if these temperatures are not followed accurately your product will cure much faster after adding each part together, so much that you will not be able to use it. The product will overheat in extreme temperatures and smoke or steam, as well as become solid within only a few minutes.

CLEAN AND PREP:
Prep and Mask your area. Clean current surface with 409 or a comparable cleaner. Make sure your work area is clean and free of clutter. You do not want any dust or loose debris present as this will contaminate the job area and finished product. Use DAP spackling to fill any small holes or cracks and seams. Make sure not to leave any excess blobs or smears on your surfaces.

Let it dry and begin masking. Roll Plastic onto the floor and under your work area. Get the masking tight up to the toe kicks of the cabinets and use masking tape to hold in place. Also run the plastic along the front edge or your cabinets (at the top just under the countertop.) The Goal is to make sure that all the epoxy drips can run off the countertop without touching your cabinets and floors. You can NEVER mask too much.

If you are building your countertops out of MDF or MDX Board in another area like a shop or garage you may not need to mask anything other than your flooring surface. You will coat your new countertop with FxPoxy and install it after it’s cured. This will also have far less impact on the time where your kitchen is usable. (There will be further instructions later on how to fabricate a new countertop out of MDF or MDX.)

Mixing Process:
NOTE: It is extremely important that the product be measured accurately and mixed thoroughly!
Paint any vertical edges with your main base color (be sure to save enough for your epoxy mixture coming up in the instructions)

0. Measure 1 Part RESIN to 1 Part HARDENER.
0. Hardener should always be poured into the mixing bucket first followed by the resin.
0. Mix well for 5 minutes with a clean mixing stick. Make sure to scrape the sides and bottom of the bucket often to pull any unmixed part A or B off the container walls. Now take your mixed FxPoxy and pour all contents into new clean containers (one for each accent color(base or Fx metallic) you intend on using) Mix each separate container with a clean mixing stick for an additional 4 minutes.
0. Now immediately pour Base coat FxPoxy mixture directly onto surface and spread with epoxy knife to coat all areas of your surface. (NOTE: This is where the product will start dripping) Ensure that the mixed product never sits in the mixing container for any extra time, because mixed product will cure much faster than on the countertop, and you will lose much of your working time.
0. After the Base coat has been spread out and completely covers your surface you can start pouring your accent colors. You can layer these colors on top of each other, or lay them next to each other in separated veins, or even use the paint stick with some of the accent colors and drag the stick through the surface. Be creative, drag the paint stick and make swirls which will mix the two colors laying on top of each other. This is the part where you get to create your own design.
0. Once you are content with the look of your colors, you will begin to torch the surface. Torch the surface evenly making sure to not torch too close to the edges.
0. Never let the torch stay in one place, you always want the torch to be moving in even overlapping strokes (if you torch too much the surface will burn). This step is meant to level the epoxy, pop all small air bubbles, and give the finished product a marbled effect. Try to look at the reflection of the surface for any non covered or uneven areas.
0. Now go around all the edges of your surface with the epoxy brush ensuring all the edges are covered. You can also do this step with your fingers, make sure to have a glove on if you choose this route.
0. The surface will still be dripping off your edges, if you wait till the product is completely dry you may have a harder time sanding off the drips, therefore if you wait 45 minutes to an 1 hour after you have torched you can remove the drips much easier by scraping them off with a paint stick or putty knife. Then after completely dry you can sand a much smaller surface.                                                                                          If you also intend on applying the FxHard coat, you must wait 48 hours after you’ve torched your surface to apply the hard coat. The Hard coat can be applied with a foam roller or sprayed on with a Preval brand spray gun. If you choose to roll you may experience roll marks and may have to coat more than one time. Therefore you must order enough of the hard coat to do multiple layers. One container of hard coat will cover 50-60 sq. ft.
0. If you choose not to hard coat your finished surface you can lightly use the surface after 48 hours.
0. The product has a total cure time of 30 days, after 30 days you can replace any appliances onto the surface and use as normal.

Fabricating with MDF or MDX

Often your counters will be in small enough sections where they could be fabricated in your garage and easily transported and installed in your kitchen or bathroom. It may be easier and give you more control of the environment if you were to fabricate new tops out of place and install them after they are completely finished and cured. This will also have far less impact on the time where your kitchen is not usable. One of the allures is the seamless look that is not possible with other counter choices. If a kitchen requiring new construction has larger counters with multiple angles that would prevent transport of the counters in one piece, the tops must be installed then surfaced in place. Once it has been determined that new tops need to be constructed it is important to make them properly using correct methods and tools. It is important to use ¾” MDF or MDX for the substrate as it is durable, stable and resistant to bowing or flexing from temperature change. Even though it is a highly compressed wood, it is not recommended to be used outdoors where constant contact to moisture will be present. In a high moisture area like a bathroom or shower you must seal the MDF or MDX skim coat of epoxy before starting you project.

0. When measuring tops that are to be made it is best to follow the old rule “measure twice and cut once” Rectangular or square counters are fairly easy to measure. Counters with multiple or compound angles are not easily measured for an exact fit. It is easiest to take exterior measurements of the existing counter and make a template out of cardboard or craft paper to cut new pieces from. Drawing a basic sketch of the kitchen and counter layout will help when deciding on finished edges and backsplash fabrication. Fabricate the backsplashes separately and install them after they are complete. This will give you a ¾” buffer with your measurement not having to be exact. It is also recommended to get the exact desired measurements and reduce them by ¼”‐3/8” to allow room to maneuver the counter tops into place or compensate for walls that may not be perfectly square
0. It is not necessary to be a carpenter countertops system, but basic understanding of a few tools and techniques is required. After you have taken all your measurements you can usually get your MDF cut to 25 1/2" wide strips on the panel saw in the store who sells you the wood. Often people will have the smaller piece cut to 4” strips for back splash pieces, or 17” to 18“ for full height backsplashes. Set out and cut your sheets in the layout of your kitchen. You will be using two sheets and making sure your seams from the first and second layer are offset from each other for strength. When building in place this task is made simple because you can use your cabinets as the work surface. Backsplashes should be made with ¾” MDF.
0. Make sure that you check all edges and ensure there are no sharp edges or unfilled gaps or cracks. 
0. Brush on a base color (also known as a bonding coat) to the countertops. Coat the edges very well. Make sure to fill in any seams or small defects with this coat. Let this coat dry for 3 hours.
0. At this point you can follow the mixing instructions and start creating!

Working with Tile as your substrate

0. Check the tile substrate to be sure there are no loose or cracked tiles. Some tile surfaces may have a deep grout line. This will require more material and needs to be considered before buying product. If you trowel the material too thin, the grout lines do have the potential to project through the finished project. This is overcome by troweling a thicker first trowel coat to fill in all grout line gaps.
0. Clean the tile surface with 409 or a similar cleaner. Saturate the surface and wipe it clean. Use DAP Spackling and a wide trowel to fill in the grout lines with diagonal strokes so your trowel doesn't fall into the grout lines. Allow the spackling to dry.
0. Lightly sand the spackling. Apply a second spackling coat, if necessary, and let it dry completely. Ensure edges and top are all evenly coated and smooth.
0. Brush on a base color (also known as a bonding coat) to the countertops. Coat the edges very well. Make sure to fill in any seams or small defects with this coat. Let this coat dry for 3 hours.
0. Then continue with the mixing instructions listed above.